The Art of Walmart Speed Shopping:

May 12, 2026May 5, 2026 / Mark Brady / 1 Comment

Shopping cart filled with pasta and canned goods in supermarket aisle — Image generated via AI.

Let’s be honest, shopping at Walmart can feel like running a marathon you didn’t train for, except the finish line is a self-checkout machine that keeps yelling, “Please place item in the bagging area.” But fear not, my fellow deal-seekers. I’ve cracked the code for the most efficient (and slightly ridiculous) way to conquer Walmart like a pro (or your local store).

Step 1: The Parking Lot Power Play
Forget circling for the “perfect” spot. Park near the cart return. Why? Because after your shopping sprint, you’ll thank yourself for not dragging a cart across three zip codes. Bonus: You can use the cart return as a landmark when you inevitably forget where you parked.

Step 2: The Cart Selection Olympics
Test your cart before committing. Push it three feet. If it wobbles like a shopping cart on roller skates, ditch it. A squeaky wheel is fine—it’s basically your theme song, but a rogue wheel will ruin your speed record.

Step 3: The Aisle Assassin Strategy
Walmart aisles are like rivers—flow with the current, don’t fight it. If you see a cluster of people debating which brand of peanut butter is “more organic,” execute a swift U-turn and circle back later. Efficiency is about momentum, not peanut purity.

Step 4: The Ninja Grab-and-Go
Know your list. Memorize it. Commit it to your soul. This is not the time for “browsing.” You’re here for milk, bread, and maybe that suspiciously cheap throw blanket you didn’t know you needed.

Step 5: The Checkout Gauntlet
Self-checkout is faster—if you’re ready. Bag like a Tetris champion. Scan like you’re defusing a bomb. And for the love of efficiency, don’t be the person who realizes they forgot eggs after paying.

Step 6: The Grand Exit
Leave with purpose. Don’t get distracted by the clearance aisle on your way out. That’s how “just a quick trip” turns into “I now own a karaoke machine and a 3-foot inflatable flamingo.”

Final Pro Tip:

If you really want to shop at Walmart like a legend, go at 7 a.m. on a Tuesday. The aisles are empty, the shelves are stocked, and the only other shoppers are retirees who will absolutely beat you to the last rotisserie chicken.

You may be thinking Geez, Mark. What does Walmart shopping have to do with the kingdom of God? A lot, really. Our world is telling us, through several media outlets, to buy more. To drive the latest model. To wear the latest fashion, and so on. Do you realize that when you see those “so-called famous people” advertising something, they most likely were given those things to generate sales? Because people think they will be happier with more of the same items that the people they idolize have.

“Fill your shopping cart,” they yell at us. “Get the latest phone, the biggest TV, the coolest car. Can’t afford it? No problem. Put it on credit. Come on, you work hard. You deserve it!” The debt of Americans was 18.3 trillion dollars in the second quarter of 2025! Some are so deep in debt that they cannot afford to be generous. That is sad.

There is a huge difference between a “need” and a “want”. Something I tried to teach my children starting when they were young. I’ll admit, the way items are displayed in the store makes it difficult not to impulse buy. Or to purchase more than only the items on your shopping list, but we must try to resist the temptation. Learn to “tune out” the lies the advertisers tell us. Instead, ask God to help us and to guide us. To help us to “Just say No,” as if shopping has become a drug, and in many ways, it has. Focusing on God can help us “break the habit,” so that we can do our shopping and still be a good steward of what He has given us, being confident that He knows what we have need of (Mat. 6:8) and will provide those things.

How to Steward Your Finances

May 5, 2026May 5, 2026 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

Pile of mixed US dollar bills on a wooden table with rubber bands — Image generated via AI.

Managing money well isn’t just about earning more — it’s about making intentional choices that align with your values, goals, and responsibilities. Being a good steward of your finances means treating your resources with care, using them wisely, and planning for both the present and the future. Here’s how you can start building a healthier relationship with your money.

1. Understand Your “Why”
Before diving into budgets and investments, take time to reflect on your financial purpose. Are you saving for a home, building a safety net, or preparing for retirement? Knowing your “why” helps you make decisions that feel meaningful rather than restrictive.

2. Create a Realistic Budget
A budget isn’t a punishment — it’s a roadmap. Track your income and expenses to see where your money is going. Allocate funds for essentials, savings, debt repayment, and a little for enjoyment. The key is balance: spend intentionally, not impulsively.

3. Live Below Your Means
Financial stewardship thrives when you resist lifestyle inflation. Just because you can afford something doesn’t mean you should buy it. Prioritize needs over wants and let your spending reflect your long-term goals.

4. Build an Emergency Fund
Life is unpredictable. Aim to save at least 3–6 months’ worth of living expenses in a separate, easily accessible account. This cushion protects you from unexpected setbacks without derailing your financial plan.

5. Manage Debt Wisely
Not all debt is bad, but unmanaged debt can quickly become a burden. Focus on paying off high-interest loans first and avoid taking on new debt unless it’s strategic and affordable.

6. Invest for the Future
Once your basics are covered, put your money to work. Whether it’s a retirement account, index funds, or real estate, investing helps your wealth grow over time. Start small if needed — consistency matters more than perfection.

7. Give Generously and Obediently
Part of stewardship is recognizing that money is a tool for impact. Whether through charitable giving, helping family, or supporting causes you care about, generosity can be deeply fulfilling.

8. Know Whose It Is
The above information is all good, but understanding whose money it is in the first place is important. If you believe in God and have accepted him, then allow him to be Lord over your finances, too. Trusting God in that way is really difficult for some people. It is all his. Your attitude should say, “Everything I have is because of God. When you understand that, it becomes easier to do what needs to be done to be financially sound. He may even ask you to give when it doesn’t look as if you can, but know this: God will make a way and provide for your needs. That kind of obedience builds faith and trust.

“After all, God, who is your Father, knows your needs before you ask him.” Mat. 6:8

¹⁹Do not gather and heap up and store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust and worm consume and destroy, and where thieves break through and steal. ²⁰But gather and heap up and store for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust nor worm consume and destroy, and where thieves do not break through and steal; ²¹For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. ²²The eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is sound, your entire body will be full of light. ²³But if your eye is unsound, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the very light in you [your conscience] is darkened, how dense is that darkness! ²⁴No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stand by and be devoted to the one and despise and be against the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (deceitful riches, money, possessions, or whatever is trusted in). ²⁵Therefore I tell you, stop being perpetually uneasy (anxious and worried) about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink; or about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life greater [in quality] than food, and the body [far above and more excellent] than clothing? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father keeps feeding them. Are you not worth much more than they?

²⁷And who of you by worrying and being anxious can add one unit of measure (cubit) to his stature or to the span of his life? ²⁸And why should you be anxious about clothes? Consider the lilies of the field and learn thoroughly how they grow; they neither toil nor spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his magnificence (excellence, dignity, and grace) was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and green and tomorrow is tossed into the furnace, will He not much more surely clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹Therefore do not worry and be anxious, saying, What are we going to have to eat? or, What are we going to have to drink? or, What are we going to have to wear? ³²For the Gentiles (heathen) wish for and crave and diligently seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows well that you need them all. ³³But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides. Mat. 6:19-33 (AMPC)

Despite What May Be

May 3, 2022April 23, 2022 / Mark Brady / 2 Comments

One of the hardest things on this journey we call, “life” is overcoming. It seems as if it will never happen. Either the hole of debt we have dug is too deep, or the struggle with the one we once loved hurts too much. Perhaps the sickness seems as if it will never get better. You know, all too well, what I am talking about, and so do I.

When Jesus taught the multitudes he would often direct their attention to nature to emphasize the point he was trying to make. He didn’t have a “whiteboard” or a “PowerPoint” presentation. He used what he had, and it worked!

To borrow this method from the great Teacher, let me show you some illustrations from nature about overcoming. Notice this Ferris wheel will someday be totally overcome by this growth in nature. It has probably taken a few years to get this to this point, but what one might of once thought was impossible, has become possible.

Consider this pile of rubble. One may make the comparison that this mess is similar to their own life. I know I once did, after making, what I thought, was a mistake that would end my service to God forever. Turns out, I was wrong on that point. In the midst of my personal, broken pile of a mess life, He slowly began to rebuild me and make me useable to him and others once again.

Then there is this tree. It found life close to disaster. It lives on the edge. Some may consider that exciting, while others would find it nerve-racking realizing that at any moment, a strong storm could come and it would lose its grip. The tree seems confident trusting the hold it has on the unmovable rock.

One can learn from this tree that finds itself so close to falling, so close to going over the edge, from becoming firewood. Burnt up and consumed, yet today, it stands tall. If we trust our “Rock and salvation” we too could stand tall no matter what storms may come.

Admire this flower. It bloomed and grew despite not being in a beautiful garden. It has no dedicated gardener to provide daily watering, plant food, or bend down and remove any weeds that may try to enter its territory. Yet it survives and fragrances the environment around it with a sweet smell.

Maybe you’re not currently living in a garden, and maybe you struggle to have your basic needs met. Take a lesson from this flower; bloom, grow and be a pleasant odor in your world.

With God’s help, you can grow and survive despite your past, or present situation. Regardless if you have a lot or a little. Make it part of your mind to be an overcomer. Set it in your heart and mind despite what may be today.

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.
James 1:2-4 (MSG)

I Need the Rainbow

August 7, 2020August 5, 2020 / Mark Brady / 4 Comments

080212TB 228 This year, 2020, has proven to be one big storm that won’t stop. It has harmed so many people, in so many ways. Interview them, and you would hear different versions of the same story, “Hurt”. Whether it’s a lost job, drowning in debt, the death of a loved one due to Covid, keeping family and friends from gathering as they once did, or new challenges no one saw coming. When will it end?

Isaiah 61:3 The Passion Translation

to strengthen those crushed by despair who mourn in Zion—
    to give them a beautiful bouquet in the place of ashes,
    the oil of bliss instead of tears,
    and the mantle of joyous praise
    instead of the spirit of heaviness.
    Because of this, they will be known as
    Mighty Oaks of Righteousness,
    planted by Yahweh as a living display of his glory.

You see, the only way to get through the storm, to silence the thunder, to calm fear when lightning flashes, is to look up, see God, and put on the mantle of joyous praise. Praise him with full throat. A friend, who lives in Taiwan, said he was singing praises to God while riding his scooter the other day. Not caring who heard him, but unless they knew English, they probably didn’t even know what he was saying anyway.

The last few blogs have had this theme, of looking only at God, so I know this is the message of heaven to all for this time, but especially to those who love God. The storm will end and when it does people will come out to survey the damage, and even if they see what harm has come upon you, but then look at your face they will see peace, love, God. They may ask, “How can you still love God? How is it you can still smile?” Your answer will be, “I’m a tree planted by Yahweh as a living display of His glory!”

The storm will end, and when it does, I hope you are still standing, and still looking up, because only then will you see the rainbow. The symbol from God, signaling, the storm is over.